Duty
by Shinji Shazaki
Summary: Slash warning again.  The beast that needs to eat its own wings is the most dangerous beast of the night.  When you anger a vampire, especially the child of Alucard, you stand to face death.  Read, review, and I hope you enjoy.
1. Freelance

Duty

C1: Freelance

[Disclaimer: Kouta Hirano owns "Hellsing."  I own whatever I write/create.  Don't steal and don't sue.]

The Hellsing house was very quiet at three o'clock in the morning.  Seras Victoria hurried through the front entrance and leapt down the stairs to her basement room.  She gathered what possessions she had and stuffed them into an over-the-shoulder rucksack.  The young vampire was only in a rush because she knew how quickly the person who had just kissed her could move.

Seras knew for a fact that no matter how hard she tried, she wouldn't be able to stop Syn from leaving Britain for parts unknown.  She needed an answer out of the no-life-king, so if Syn wasn't going to stop, Seras was going to go with her.

The master of the Hellsing house had given her permission to leave, as well as to acquire some of Alucard's blood to become her own vampire.  Seras hurried back up the stone stairs and out of the Hellsing house once more.  The blond-haired woman quickly thought of the direction Syn had walked away in and ran that way.

----------

Syn stood at the railing of a pier, staring out at the black water.  The place she remembered best for having an overpopulation of vampires was America.  Her memories were blurry, and she could just remember some of the vampires she had managed to kill were freaks.  Her last meal—the blood of both Heinkel Wolfe and Yumiko Tagaki—was more than enough for her to get across the Atlantic and to a safe haven somewhere on the eastern coast of the United States.

The sun wouldn't rise for a few more hours.  She would be safe, if she left immediately, and went fast.  Syn had to smile at the last thing she had done at the Hellsing house.  Seras was probably out of her mind with questions and doubt.  The black-haired vampire put her right foot on the railing, getting ready to jump and leave Britain for a very long time.

"SYN!"

The shout broke her concentration, and her left foot caught on the railing as she leapt.  Syn fell face-first into the icy water with a resounding splash.  Seras Victoria ran to the edge of the pier and knelt down, looking into the water for any sign of un-life.  Syn's head broke the surface of the water after a moment.  She spat water from her fanged mouth and swam to where Seras was kneeling.

Seras gave Syn her gloved hand and helped her from the water.  Syn shook her head and sighed, smiling.

"You know, Seras, I'm damn sure I'm in love with you, but don't push your luck." Syn murmured, "What are you doing here anyway?"

"I want to know why you…did that." Seras blushed and couldn't bring herself to say what happened.

"What, kissed you?" Syn stood up and shook her shoulders to get some of the water off herself, "Well, I just said that I love you.  Did you miss that, or do you not know what it means?"

"Why?"

"Why what?" Syn checked her gun, the Blade, to see if anything was damaged, "Dammit, everything's soaked.  I'll need to dry it all before I even thinking of shooting it.  You're cute.  I'll forgive you."

"Why do you…love me?" Seras was blushing madly, "I mean, I've told you at least a dozen times that I hate you."

"I don't know." Syn replied, "I like cute girls, and you're cute.  You just happened to tickle the rest of my fancy.  Who knows why anyone loves anything?  Listen, Seras, the sun's going to come up in a few hours, and I need to cross the Atlantic by then.  If you'll excuse me."  She hopped up to the railing and started to leap away again, but Seras grabbed her foot.  Syn flailed in midair, and then started to fall right back towards the water.  Seras held her just above the dark water, an angry look on her face.

"Give me an answer, or I drop you." she threatened.

"An answer to what?" Syn asked, twisting to look up at Seras.

"Why you keep saying you love me when we both know that's not true."

"Oh for heaven's sake!" Syn snapped, "People have been telling me that they hate me for the past four hundred and twenty years!  I don't listen to that when I know they aren't telling the truth, and you don't really hate me!"

"Yes I do!" Seras yelled angrily, throwing Syn into the water.  It took a moment before Syn reappeared.

"You really don't, and I really need to get moving." Syn shook her head with a sigh, "So, I'll see you around."  She started up out of the water towards the west.

"Oh no you don't!" Seras shouted.  She dropped her rucksack and leapt at Syn.  The blond vampire crashed into the black-haired vampire and both splashed down into the water.  Syn rolled her eyes and grabbed Seras by the collar.  With a single heave, she flung Seras clear out of the water and at least twenty feet into the air.  A shockwave drove the water around her away and she flew back swiftly to the pier.

Before Seras could hit the ground, Syn was there and caught the young vampire.  Seras stared at Syn in shock, both of them dripping wet, and she in Syn's arms.  Syn put her down with a playful smile.  After a moment, she flicked Seras in the nose.

"Ow!" Seras yelped, holding her nose, "What was that for?"

"Your showing up and dumping me in the drink has cost me about twenty minutes." Syn replied, "I needed all the time I had to get across the Atlantic and find a spot to sleep as a dog.  Unfortunately, you cost me the time I had to look, so I need to wait until tomorrow night."

"Why?" Seras asked.

"Vampires can't stand sunlight, stupid." Syn rapped on Seras' head sharply, "Is there a brain in that pretty head of yours?"

"But I've been able to go out during the day."

"You're young.  You still have some resistance to sunlight.  I, on the other hand, will roast like an unhappy hot dog.  Thanks very much, nitwit."

"That's what I mean!" Seras snapped, waving a finger at Syn's nose, "You insult me all the time!  Why would you insult someone you love?"

"Because I tease, and you don't have a shred of humor in your undead body." Syn moved Seras' hand away and stood nose to nose with her.  Seras blushed crimson from the close quarters.  Syn smiled at her, gave her a swift kiss, and then turned and started to walk away.

"I'm going to go find a nice tree to sleep under." she said, "Bye."

"Wait!" Seras hurried up and grabbed Syn's arm, "I'm coming with you if you won't give me a straight answer.  I have an idea."

"Wonderful.  What is it?"

"Why don't we sneak aboard one of those ships and make sure one of the passengers doesn't show up?  Then we could both get to the United States, and I'm sure no one would care if one of their paying customers brought a pet."

"One problem.  You don't drink fresh blood."

"I brought some blood packs."

"Clever girl.  Very well, let's get ready!"

_—to be continued—_


	2. Hiding Journey

Duty

C2: Hiding Journey

[Disclaimer: Kouta Hirano owns "Hellsing."  I own whatever I write/create.  Don't steal and don't sue.]

Seras walked down the hallway of the commercial cruise ship and paused.  She leaned on the railing, smiling as she watched the sunset, the glowing red orb turning the sky blood red.  The young woman had always wondered what a sunset would look like out somewhere on the water.  It was glorious until the very last few seconds.

A loud barking brought Seras from her staring.  She walked down the hall swiftly, knowing exactly was making the noise.  One of the cleaning staff was up against the thin wall of the hallway, shaking in terror.  A massive black dog stood protectively in the doorway, barking at the top of its lungs.  Its hackles up, it snapped at the wheels of the cleaning cart.

"Bad dog." Seras walked up and spoke sharply to the black-haired canine, "Back inside.  Go!"  The dog barked softly once more, and padded back into the room.  Seras pulled the door towards her and stood in front of the room's entrance.

"I'm sorry." Seras said pleasantly, closing her eyes and smiling, "My dog is overprotective of my things, and I must have forgotten to put the 'do not disturb' sign on this morning.  In the future, please, don't try to clean my room."  She slipped inside the room and locked the door.

The vampire let out a sigh of relief when she heard the cart roll away.  Seras glared angrily at the black dog sitting on the chair in the main room.

"Syn, I know for a fact that I put that sign on the door." Seras pointed at the 'do not disturb' sign on the floor, "Why did you take it off?  And when, for that matter?"  The dog's form seemed to fade, leaving only red eyes in a black lump.  It reformed suddenly into the vampire Syn.

"I would like to actually have a decent meal." Syn replied, standing from the chair, "I'm not against fresh blood, and I'm not going to drain your reserves.  And I took it off when you left."

"Are you mental?" Seras kept her voice down, "You can't just take someone's blood!  Someone will notice a missing person!"

"Well, you can't expect me to try and take blood from a number of people." Syn sighed, "That's a way to make a vampire sick!  Either you take a large enough drink from a single blood type, or you take small drinks from the same type.  Otherwise, the types don't mix, and a vampire is liable to be ill.  So unless you want me to start biting you, I suggest you find a way around it."

"Can't you find some people with the same blood type?" Seras asked.

"I'm asleep most of the day, and you don't let me leave the room because you're scared I'm going to bite someone.  Besides, I'd actually have to get near people.  And besides, you know what happens when a vampire takes the blood of a human without killing them.  I'm not going to be anyone's servant except Master Integra's."

"Then we need to find someone that's…_expendable_." Seras shuddered at the idea of innocent human death.  Syn suddenly stared at the door, her eyes narrow.  She ran to Seras and kicked both feet out, knocking Seras against her and suddenly rising into the air.  She pressed both of them against the ceiling and stared down at the door.

"What are—"  Seras couldn't get more than two words out before Syn locked her lips to hers.  The door's handle rattled angrily just before the wood shattered from a hard kick.  A burly man in military fatigues shuffled into the room.  He walked swiftly into the other rooms, and soon left.

"How convenient." Syn smirked as she let gravity take a slow hold on them once more, "That was a ghoul."

"You're kidding." Seras was getting used to Syn's abrupt kisses.

"Nope." Syn pulled her gun from her jacket and handed it to Seras, "Time to go ghoul hunting.  Who knows—maybe there's someone that's in shock and bleeding."

"Shouldn't we be more concerned with keeping the ghouls from the humans?"

"That too."

----------

"Hurry up and round up the people already!  Ugh, you damn ghouls!"  A man in a robe pointed angrily at the doors of the large dining room.  The five ghouls groaned in their normal fashion and just shuffled around aimlessly

"I don't believe this.  How can a normal human be controlling those ghouls?"

"Magic." Syn replied in a whisper, "Very strong magic.  Definitely human magic, as well.  The ghouls don't answer to him much.  And our door is the only one that's been broken."

"Ghouls know where other vampires are, don't they.  Dammit.  They can probably sense us right now."

"You catch the sorcerer.  I suppose that my gun would be too loud.  I'll get the ghouls."

"That's it?  That's all you want me to do?"

"If you hear something that sounds strange to you, close your eyes and don't dare look at that guy.  If he has access to ghouls, he'll have access to a vampire to make the ghouls.  His spells are dangerous.  Now go!"  She and Seras leapt from the balcony and down to where the ghouls and the spellcaster stood.

Syn ran swiftly at the ghouls, pulling her staff from her back and stabbing to kill.  Seras crept carefully around the tables, watching as the sorcerer screamed at his minions to destroy Syn.  The blond vampire leapt over a table and grabbed the man in a sleeper hold.

The silver-tipped staff sliced through the cursed undead flesh, dust piling on the floor.  Seras watched in both admiration and awe at the speed and accuracy of the blows.  She considered herself a good mark, but was really piddling in comparison to everyone she had seen at the Hellsing institute.  A strange murmuring came to her ears, past the howls of the ghouls.

Seras closed her eyes and brought her head back angrily.  She nodded hard and fast, cracking her head against the sorcerer's.  He stopped his chanting immediately with many an angry curse.

"OK, mister magician, where exactly did you get the spells and the ghouls?" Syn asked as she walked to where Seras held the sorcerer.

"That's none of your business, you freak!" the sorcerer shouted.

"I'm anything but." Syn narrowed her eyes and pushed an errant strand of her long black hair behind her ear, "Seras, give him to me."  The moment Seras let the sorcerer go, Syn's hand latched onto his neck.  She bit into his neck fluidly and turned from Seras.  Seras turned her back to Syn and bit her lip to keep any thoughts from her mind.

The bloodlust was terrible, and getting worse.  The first time she had actually drank her given blood was after she had seen Alucard feed off the reporter.  It was so enticing—too enticing.  The chilled medical blood was very good, like a favorite meal from childhood, but it was still only _good_.  Seras wanted to know what fresh blood—real blood—tasted like.  Was it better?  What was it like?

Seras didn't want to admit it, but she was enjoying the trip was Syn.  She was enjoying being around Syn.  She was even starting to enjoy the kisses Syn gave her unexpectedly.

A sharp sound brought Seras back to the world.  Syn had stabbed the man through the heart with her staff to avoid him returning as a ghoul.

"We had better clean this up." she said, "And we had better fix our door."  She didn't look at Seras for the rest of the night.  When the sun rose, the dog that was Syn gave Seras a sad look as she walked away.

The door clicked shut.

_—to be continued—_


	3. Learning Experience

Duty

C3: Learning Experience

[Disclaimer: Kouta Hirano owns "Hellsing."  I own whatever I write/create.  Don't steal and don't sue.]

"Right, we can stay here for a while." Syn walked into the hotel room and looked around, "I don't see any reason to run around for a while."

"Syn, why are we here?" Seras asked as she turned the deadbolt lock, "If there was a problem with vampires in New York, you think there would have been some news."

"And that's exactly why there is a problem in New York." Syn chuckled, "Unexplained and strange deaths are a staple in the city.  And that's why we're on the outskirts of the city.  Let's not have some kind of lunatic try and kill us."

Seras left the question at that and sat on one of the two beds in the room.  She couldn't help but wonder how Syn could afford to let them stay in such a posh hotel.  The pay from the Hellsing institute had always been a healthy number, but Seras never thought to do anything with it.

"Money is a necessity in the world." Syn murmured, glancing out the window before drawing the curtains to a tight close, "A multitude of bank accounts is a good thing.  That reminds me.  Seras, change into your most comfortable clothing."

"What?" Seras blushed madly, "Listen, I might like some of your kisses, but I'm not going to do anything with you!"  Syn blinked in confusion, shaking her head slightly.

"I said to change into comfortable clothing, not strip." she said, "Now that you're a no-life-king, you need to learn the skills you need."

"Which means what?"

"The first is regeneration.  Have you noticed how many times Alucard and I have been stabbed and shot?  We don't change clothing.  There isn't a reason."

"But you just…how am I supposed to do that?"

Syn laughed and turned her back to Seras to let her change.  The blonde ruffled through her rucksack and pulled a pair of faded black jeans, a dark blue t-shirt, and a black jacket.

"You look good in anything." Syn turned about and smiled at the other vampire, "Good.  It's really rather hard to describe how you use any kind of skill.  It's instinct, mostly.  But some skills you have to want.  Telepathy, telekinesis, and flight—you have to concentrate to use those skills.  Many of them just come with time, experience."

"Like a sixth sense?" Seras questioned.

"Right.  That's something that comes early.  Vampires need to know when danger is near, when something isn't right.  How else would we live so long?"

"Is there a way to…test some of these skills?"

"Not unless you want me to shoot you.  But from what I've seen, you're actually starting to develop your regeneration.  It took a few minutes, but the cuts from the nun's sword on your clothing went away.  And if I'm not mistaken—" She walked over and tilted Seras' chin up and pressed a gentle thumb against her neck.  "—the scar from the priest's blade is all but gone.  I expect that you'll probably have the skill down within a few days."

Seras closed her eyes tightly, feeling another scarlet blush paint her cheeks.  Her neck had been very sensitive when she was alive, and it had only gotten worse with her turn to vampire un-life.  Syn's touch was electrifying, and yet another hint at how she was starting to enjoy being with her.

"Can you stop, please?" she managed to sputter out.  Syn blinked and looked at Seras directly.  She smiled faintly at the blush, a soft pink touching her pale cheeks as well.

"Sorry." she pulled her hands away, "I've not been around other vampires for a while.  I forget how sensitive our necks are."

"Does that happen to every vampire?" Seras massaged her neck halfheartedly to try and forget the feeling.

"It does." Syn sat on the other bed, "I'm sure that if there were any vampire couples out there, that'd be a place to start something."  Seras blushed again, and Syn looked a bit self-conscious at the statement.

"Sorry again.  I'll shut up now."

----------

"What are we doing in here?" Seras asked in a tone that was washed away in the beat of the music and voices.  Though almost no one could hear her, Syn and Seras could whisper and still hear each other.  Yet another wonder of vampiric senses.

"Call it a field test, officer Victoria." Syn teased, leading Seras over to an empty table to get things in order, "Back alley nightclubs like this are breeding grounds for ghouls and freaks.  I don't even want to think of how many there are in here."

"Are you saying we're surrounded?" Seras' red eyes widened in shock.

"Essentially."

"You nutter!  You're going to get us both killed!  There was only one time I can remember eliminating so many ghouls, and that was with Walter!"

"Skill number two, Seras." Syn hushed her with a finger over the young vampire's lips, "Unarmed melee destruction.  You've done it once or twice, haven't you?"

"Not that I can recall clearly." Seras shook her blond head with a frown, "I lost control, and it wasn't a good thing that I did."

"Now you see why your old master had the control art restrictions." Syn cast her eyes over the crowd, taking in every person, "He liked letting his wild side loose.  You have to learn control."

"Haven't you ever been out of control?" Seras asked in contempt, "Or are you little miss perfect?"

"Believe me, it takes one hell of a lot to get me pissed off enough to let my wild side loose." Syn said without humor or malice, "And I did that four hundred years ago.  I killed an entire village when I did.  That's why you need control."

The two were quiet for a long while.  Seras thought about the situation that was going to come about soon, and Syn was quiet after reminiscing.  A lanky man with bleached and spiked hair strode up to where they sat, his gold eyes glazed over with drugs.

"Hey, ladies, want to come back to my place for a good time?" he leaned heavily on his arms onto the table, his whiskey breath washing over the two women.

"Oh, god, man." Seras waved a hand before her nose to try to alleviate the scent, "How much have you had to drink?"

"Enough, babe." the man chuckled with a lecherous smile.  Seras frowned and leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms in defiance.

"He smells of something other than alcohol." Syn murmured in a tone the man couldn't possibly hear, "Do you smell it?"

"Yes." Seras replied in the same whisper, "He smells just like the freaks at the Tower of London."

"Dandy.  It seems we were right about this place.  You've got my gun, right?"

"With the safety off, of course.  Can we actually do this?"

"No doubt.  In the name of God, impure souls of the living dead shall be banished into eternal damnation.  Amen."

"Amen."

Seras managed to keep pace this round.  When Syn drew the staff from her back and sliced the man's neck in twain, she turned out of her seat, aimed, and fired.  Four men went down from her bullets, and four more from Syn.  The two split and went in opposite directions.  Seras emptied the clip in a matter of seconds, bringing down a veritable cloud of freaks and ghouls.  She reloaded, saving the empty magazine for refilling.

As she dodged swipes and angry bullets from normal, human guns, Seras glanced towards Syn.  The other vampire was making just as much progress, her staff cutting through the lesser creatures the same as it did air.  A swift smile, a click of the gun loading, and Seras shot down another swarm.

It occurred suddenly to Seras how dreadfully outnumbered they were.  There were well over two hundred people packed into the club, and she most certainly didn't have two hundred bullets.  She regretted not having the Halconnen handy, but it was too cumbersome, as well as damn suspicious.  She never would have been able to walk a step without a police officer harassing her.

Seras estimated that the three full clips Syn had given her would kill at least forty freaks, and a few more if she managed to blast through more than one at a time.  She suddenly envied her master's exceptional marksmanship.  The clip was empty again, and Seras loaded the last one she had.  It had to count, get rid of a large number of freaks so Syn wouldn't be swarmed and—Seras shuddered in fear—overrun.

Ghouls mobbed her and she knew exactly why.  The freaks, though much weaker than true undead, were still formidable in their own right.  They moved their ghouls to her to draw out the blessed silver bullets to avoid their own deaths.  Seras waded swiftly, getting close to the ghouls and firing through them to other ghouls, and some freaks.  She repeated the process, sending a few dozen ghouls and freaks to a hell of pain, but was soon completely out of bullets.

The mass seemed just as big as before.  Seras swore just before the wind was knocked out of her.  One of the freaks had broken off the pack when he saw her bullets run out.  He grabbed her shoulders and smashed his knee into her abdomen.  Seras knew she didn't need breath, but the strike wasn't meant for that.  It was meant to overbalance her so the freak could smash his fists against her skull.

Ghouls swarmed over her when she fell to the ground.  Seras barely squirmed away, and managed to stand once again.  She looked to see how Syn was fairing.  The situation got even worse.  Someone had managed to strike the silver staff from Syn's hands, and it was lost in a dark corner.  Syn was fighting on fists and feet alone, barely able to keep the freaks at bay.  The ghouls, mindless zombies that they were, started to move towards the rest of the fight.

Seras heard a muffled curse just before Syn vanished under the grasp of their enemies.  Her eyes widened in shock.  That didn't just happen.  She ran forwards and threw ghouls over her shoulder to get to the middle of the mass.  The ghouls stood again and clustered around her.  Seras felt a familiar wire tensing inside her.  It had happened before, and it was growing tighter.  The anger was going to break her control, she knew it, and she didn't care.

The freaks were _not_ going to bring harm to Syn.  With an inhuman howl, Seras tore through the dead flesh of the ghouls around her and lay waste to those that came closer.  Her eyes wild and her fangs bared, she stormed at the freaks and thrust her hand through one immediately.  The freak woman screamed and exploded into dust, and Seras smiled darkly.

This was the animal side that needed to be tamed.  This was the beast that killed its own, ate its own wings to grow tame.  Seras tore freak after freak to shreds, anger overcoming the beast.  She forced the beast to eat its own wings, gaining control of her strength and ability.  They weren't going to hurt Syn, and she was going to make those who had tried to harm her pay, and pay with pain.

Syn grimaced at the rapid-fire shots being drilled into her torso at point blank.  The close range and speed drove bullet after bullet clear through her and into the floor below.  Blood seeped from the wounds, covering the floor around her.  They would have to run out of bullets sometime, or they would stop when they thought she would never get up.

The gunman abruptly stopped.  Everyone looked to him, and they all gaped at an immaculate white glove that was shoved through his chest.  He howled, and vanished into dust.  Seras stood there, looking beyond raged.  She punched two men in the head hard enough to crack their skulls and turn them to dust.  Instantly afterwards, she leapt at the man who was holding Syn's arms behind her and knocked him to the ground.  Syn sat on the ground, her arms propping her up.

She didn't need to turn around to know what happened to that last freak.  The crunch and splatter was enough.  Blood on the floor turned misty and swept up into the gaping bullet holes in her torso, repairing the damage and reforming what had been destroyed.  Syn turned to see Seras kneeling over the dust of the last freak, unable to see her face.

"I just killed all these people." Seras said in a calm voice.

"Seras, they weren't human." Syn reminded her quickly, "You can't feel so bad about killing people that aren't human."

"I didn't want them to hurt you." Seras whispered, "I don't care how many I killed, I just didn't want you hurt."

"It's all right." Syn didn't know how to react to Seras' words, "I'm not…I'm not hurt at all."  A soft, trembling sigh came from Seras, and her shoulders began to quake.  "Seras, no, I don't want you to cry.  I don't want you hurt, either."  Seras turned and took hold of Syn's jacket, burying her face against Syn's chest.  Tears slid down her cheeks, and she couldn't stop them.

"I'm sorry." Seras cried softly, and she didn't know why.

_—to be continued—_


End file.
